Archive for September, 2007

Friday Flower Porn: Purple Gaping Maw

The deck plantings looked innocent enough. Trite flowers and greenery were stuffed into cheap plastic containers, crammed together like so many commuters in a suburban horticultural subway car. Those frilly purple dames though. If he could only get a closer gander at them. They were so coy. Were they as virtuous as they seemed? He buzzed in for a closer look.
Then it hit him. These were not chaste flowers. Not at all. These were turgid violet temptresses. He knew he was taking his chances. If he flew too close, he would be sucked into the gaping purple…gaaaah!
CR_GapingMaw_2007July1.JPG
I’m not sure of the genus & species of this plant, but close-up, it’s a little more exciting that at a distance.

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We interrupt this program…

…to reassure the Kevin-o-philes and the Kevin-o-phobes, for that matter, that the raucous young bonobo will be back on the blog in the future. Exactly when that will be is to be determined at this point, but he will be back!
In the meantime, I am sure that Jim “I-am-the-god-of-drums-and-circuits-worship-me-you-fools” Fiore will continue to keep you entertained, e.g., the comments in response to Kevin’s A-kickin’ the Fannie (or a’dyin’ tryin’) post. As a last resort, I, The World’s Most Boring Woman&#0153, will offer my garbled, geriatric mutterings. You will note that I do no take on or seek out the same, um, clientele that Kev does. As a soft* atheist and a practicing scientist/manager of private industry, I direct my time and energy toward more immediate battles off the blog’s radar. That does not mean I do not harbor contempt for the troglodytes that Kevin so eagerly skewers.
*”soft” does not imply any wavering in my conviction, but rather that I know and respect plenty of the reasonable faithful, and that I prefer to avoid catching them in the crossfire when I rail against fundagelicals. I’m a more of a “can’t we all -or most of us – get along” atheist.

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Beehived Babes, Big Blue & Univac

James Lileks maintains one of my favorite high-kitsch entertainment time-sinks, namely The Institute of Official Cheer. Lileks has scanned all sorts of advertisements, comics, and cookbooks (sp. The Gallery of Regrettable Food) from the 30, 40s, 50s and 60s, and then has commented on them. Some of his text makes me smile. Some makes me laugh aloud, spraying my computer monitor in a Jackson Pollock-like motif using masticated food or coffee as the medium.
A science and technology related addition to the Institute is Compu-Promo. Here’s an excerpt from the introduction:

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The Science of Brassiere-ology

Or when Maidenform just isn’t enough.
LiveScience reports that Bras Don’t Support Bouncing Breasts.
bra_engineering.jpg
The science of brassiere design in this study refers to the biomechanics of breasts bouncing during exercise. For women with larger endowment, e.g., a pair of D-cup breasts weighing 15-23 pounds, the unrestrained movement has potential to damage the delicate supporting ligaments and inflict pain. Women may abandon active sports because of this.
Sports bras of the compression type only limit up-and-down movement of the breasts. The study revealed that during vigorous exercise, women’s breasts not only move up-and-down, but also side-to-side and in-and-out. The sum of the motion is something akin to a figure eight.

While brassieres have evolved throughout history from body-binding corsets to cleavage-enhancing “miracle” bras, only recently have researchers injected a dose of science into the design of undergarments that go beyond conferring a more “perky” look, the researcher says.
“It is only recently that bra design has turned to science,” said study author Joanna Scurr, a biomechanics professor at the University of Portsmouth in England. “There was no research. It’s like designing a car or kitchen equipment without first thinking ‘what is the purpose of this?’”

A figure eight. Huh.

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MST3000 – Doc Bushwell Version: Reign of Fire and The Prestige

In anticipation of forking over multiple dead presidents, a healthy kidney and sacrificing a pair of white doves to enter the local googolplex cinema to see 3:10 to Yuma, I indulged in a Christian Bale-o-thon this weekend. Well, OK, two DVDs don’t make a “-thon” but it’s a little more focused than my typical viewing habits.
The two films I watched this past weekend were Reign of Fire and The Prestige. Both qualify as Mystery Science Theatre designates. In fact, Michael Nelson of the real MST 3000 has a Riff on Reign of Fire available for the low, low, LOW price of $2.99!

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A Mnemonic Device for Electrical Students

Sequences, whether it’s the colors of the rainbow, the names of the planets, or ages of Earth’s geologic past just scream for mnemonic devices such as acronym-sentences. Some of these can be quite entertaining in their own right, and even more entertaining if you make them up yourself. For example, beginning electrical engineering and technology students are faced with the task of memorizing the resistor color code. The code is used to denote the nominal value of resistors with a total of ten colors corresponding to the numerals 0 through 9:

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The Dance of the Jumping Spider

This deserves to be highlighted. Hat tip to Lorri Talley (see comments in Orb Weaver entry).
I give you…
The Mating Dance of the Jumping Spider!
“I have the best pedipalps of them all! The very best. With my little dance, I will hypnotize you into wanting them. Yes, my darling, wanting them!”

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Name That Orb Weaver!

Since Labor Day weekend has passed, it’s time to put away those white shoes and to take note of the late summer orb weaver spiders.
Orb Weaver spiders are members of the Araneidae family. These include the ubiquitous yellow and black garden spider and familiar genera such as Mangora spp. and Araneus spp. When my kids were little, they referred to the more common Araneidae as “Charlottes” after E.B. White’s Charlotte’s Web.
Chimp Refuge field observers, Dawn & Bobby, recently shared a photo of an Araneidae arachnid that has set up her shop behind their house:

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The Chimp Refuge Comes OUT.

A new addition can be found in the sidebar. Yes, the Chimp Refuge has joined the OUT Campaign bandwagon. Click on the Scarlet Letter of Atheism, and you will be taken to the site for the campaign which includes a link to Richard Dawkins’ introduction to the initiative.
Since it’s a Saturday, and I’m in a frivolous frame of mind, I’ll post some atheist-friendly graphics below the fold. They may be already known to many but there’s nothing as comforting as friendly familiar faces. Pull up a chair, have a cup of coffee (the Official Beverage of the Devil and Atheists) and have a look.

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